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Eylanja, Aglangia or Eğlence,is a suburb and a municipality of greater Nicosia, located in the southeast part of the Nicosia metropolitan area. It has been a separate municipality since 1985. Almost 45% of its land is either in the buffer zone or situated north of the Green Line. The Green Line runs close to Aglangia’s east and southeast outskirts. Both the old Cypriot Greek name Eylenja and the Turkish name Eğlence have the meaning “entertainment.” Turkish Cypriots claim that the village acquired this name because Ottoman administrators had summer residences in the area. On the other hand, Goodwin claims that the name might have derived from the name Glange or Glangeas, who was the first landlord of the village in 1467. Aglangia also contains a large national park called Athalassa within its perimeter. 

 

 

Historical Population:

From the Ottoman period until 1964, the village was mixed, with a tiny Turkish Cypriot neighborhood. As can be seen from the chart above, in the Ottoman census of 1831, Christians (Greek Cypriots) constituted 91% of the population. In 1891 this percentage increased to 95%. Throughout the British period, while the Greek Cypriot population increased steadily, the Turkish Cypriot population fluctuated. After 1946, other ethnic groups such as Armenians and Maronites settled in the village, too. In 1960 there were 245 Armenians living in Aglangia. In addition, during the same period the Turkish Cypriot population began to recover, rising from 131 persons in 1946 to 316 in 1960. Thus, by 1960,, Greek Cypriots constituted 88% of the population, Turkish Cypriots 7.5%, and others 4.5%.

Displacement:

The first conflict-related displacement took place during the intercommunal disturbances of 1964. All the Turkish Cypriot inhabitants of Aglangia fled the village in January and moved to the Turkish Cypriot-controlled part of Nicosia and Hamid Mandres(039). Only one Turkish Cypriot, an elderly mukhtar, stayed in the village, while none of the displaced Turkish Cypriots returned. Currently, most of the Turkish Cypriots of Aglangia are scattered around north Cyprus, with a small pocket in Nicosia(074). After the 1974 war, the village became an important reception center for displaced Greek Cypriots arriving from the north.

Current Inhabitants:

Currently the village is mainly inhabited by its original Greek Cypriot villagers and displaced Greek Cypriots who moved there after 1974. According to the Aglangia municipality, currently at least one-third of its population is comprised of displaced families. The last census of 2001 puts the total population of the municipality at 18,953. The municipality’s current population is estimated to be around 22,000.

  

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• Fehmi, Hasan (2003), “Güney’de Kalan Değerlerimiz,” Lefkoşa (Nicosia): Özyay Matbaacılık.
• Fellahoğlu, Esat (2010), “Ulusal Direnişte Baf Köyleri,” İstanbul: Bayrak Matbaacılık.
• Giray, Halil: KKTC Yerleşim Birimleri, Yürürlükteki ve Eski İsimler Listesi KKTC İskân Bakanlığı : KKTC Coğrafi İsimler Kataloğu : (Cilt – I and II), Lefkoşa.
• Goodwin, Jack C. (1984), “An Historical Toponymy of Cyprus (Forth edition),” Nicosia (copy number 6).
• Hart-Davis, C. H (1922), “Report and general abstracts of the census of 1921, taken on the 24th April, 1921,” London: Waterlow & Sons.
• Hart-Davis, C. H (1932), “Report of the Census of 1931,” Nicosia: Cyprus Government Printing Office.
• Hatay, Mete, (2005). “Beyond Numbers: An Inquiery into the Political Integration of the Turkish ‘Settlers’ in Northern Cyprus,” PRIO/Cyprus Centre Report  4/2005, Nicosia/Oslo, PRIO.
• Hill, Sir George, (1952). A History of Cyprus, Vol. IV., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
• Ioannides, Christos P., 1991. “In Turkey’s Image: The Transformation of Occupied Cyprus into a Turkish Province,” Aristide D. Caratzas, New York.
• KKTC Başbakanlık Devlet Planlama Örgütü Müsteşarlığı, “15 Aralık 1996 Genel Nüfus Sayımı Sonuçları (Özet), 26, November 1997,” Nicosia.
• Mavrogordato, Alexander (1901), “Report and general abstracts of the census of 1901, taken on the 1st April, 1901,” Nicosia: Government Printing Office.
• Mavrogordato, Alexander (1912), “Report and general abstracts of the census of 1911, taken on the 2nd April, 1911,” London:  Waterlow & Sons.
• Menardos, Simos (2001), Τοπωνημικαι και Λαογραφικαι Μελεται (Topographical and Folkloric Studies), Nicosia: Centre for Scientific Studies
  Perry, Frederic W., 1884. Report on the Census of Cyprus 1881, Eyre and Spottiswoode, London.
• Republic of Cyprus, 1961. “Census of Population and Agriculture, 1960: Volume I: Population by Location, Race, and Sex,” Nicosia
• TRNC 2006 census preliminary results can be found at:  www.devplan.org
  TRNC Prime Ministry State Planning Organisation Statistics and Research Department, Census of Population: Social and Economic Characteristics of Population, December 15, 1996, TRNC Prime Ministry, Nicosia, 1999.
• Standing Cypriot Commission for the Standardization of Geographical Names (2007), “Οδηγος Τυποποιησης Ονοματων (Guide to Standardized Names),” Nicosia: Ministry of Education and Culture.
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• Patrick, Richard (1976), “Political Geography and the Cyprus Conflict: 1963-1971,” Department of Geography, Faculty of Environmental Studies, University of Waterloo.
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• Republic of Cyprus (1962), “Census of population and agriculture, 1960,” Nicosia: Government Printing Office.
• Republic of Cyprus (1984), “Census of population 1982,” Nicosia: Department of Statistics and Research, Ministry of Finance.
• Republic of Cyprus (2003), “Census of population 2001,” Nicosia: Department of Statistics and Research, Ministry of Finance.
• St John-Jones, L. W., 1983. “The Population of Cyprus: Demographic Trends and  Socio-Economic Influences” (with a foreword by W. H. Morris-Jones), Maurice  Temple, Smith Limited, London.
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• Yorgancıoğlu,  Oğuz: Kıbrıs’ta Türkçe Yer Adları ve Veriliş Yöntemleri Üzerine Bir Araştırma Kıbrıs Araştırmaları Dergisi, Cilt : 2, Sayı : 3, Yıl : 96

Websites:

• http://www.cyprus-village.com/ (for the villages)
• http://news.karpasha.com/
• http://human-rights-archaeology.blogspot.com/
• http://kypros.org/Occupied_Cyprus/ (for the villages in the north)